July 16, 2012 -- Financial Market Update:
Risks to financial stability have increased since the April 2012 Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR). Sovereign yields in southern Europe have risen sharply amid further erosion of the investor base. Elevated funding and market pressures pose risks of further cuts in peripheral euro area credit. The measures agreed at the recent European Union (EU) leaders’ summit provide significant steps to address the immediate crisis. Aside from supportive monetary and liquidity policies, the timely implementation of the recently agreed measures, together with further progress on banking and fiscal unions, must be a priority. Uncertainties about the asset quality of banks’ balance sheets must be resolved quickly, with capital injections and restructurings where needed. Growth prospects in other advanced countries and emerging markets have also weakened, leaving them less able to deal with spillovers from the euro area crisis or to address their own home-grown fiscal and financial vulnerabilities. Uncertainties on the fiscal outlook and federal debt ceiling in the United States present a latent risk to financial stability. Text also available in: عربي; 中文; Español; Français; 日本語; Русский.